Peshawar:: The ancient city of Peshawar, once known for its fragrant gardens, Gul e Dawoodi and clear blue skies, is now choking under a blanket of air pollution emanating mostly from tsunami of unregistered rickshaws, bricks kilns and marble units.
Across KP, urban and air pollution has emerged as one of the most critical public health and environmental challenges, and Peshawar stands at the epicenter of this environmental problem, exposing people to serious health ailments.
From the bustling bazaars of Qissa Khwani to the busy intersections of Ashraf, Charsadda and University Roads, residents are exposed to breathing air thick with pollutants while PTI leaders paid a deaf ear to this serious challenge.
The city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) routinely exceeds the safe limits set by the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS), while fine particulate matter (PM2.5) level hover several times above the permissible thresholds.
‘PM2.5 pollution increases age-specific mortality risk. Residents of Peshawar are highly vulnerable due to emissions from unregulated traffic, brick kilns, marble units, and chipboard factories,’ explained Dr. Malik Riaz, a medical and children doctor while talking to reporter on Thursday.
He said that PM2.5 particles are microscopic yet penetrating deep into the lungs and bloodstream, contributing to heart disease, asthma, and chronic respiratory illnesses.
‘The World Health Organization recommends a PM2.5 concentration below 25 µg/m³, but Peshawar’s readings are alarmingly higher,’ he warned.
Studies revealed that emissions from the transport sector account for nearly 58.5% of Peshawar’s pollution, with roadside dust, domestic burning, and industrial emissions adding to the toxic mix. Smoke and dust hang at heights of about ten feet in the city, often visible even on clear mornings.
‘The health impacts of air pollution are severe. We see a sharp rise in cases of asthma, bronchitis, COPD, and other diseases,’ said Dr. Malik Riaz.
‘Most of our patients with respiratory distress come from urban Peshawar,’ he added, highlighting the invisible burden of disease linked to air quality.
Globally, he said air pollution causes about seven million deaths each year, with COPD alone responsible for over 3.2 million.
In Pakistan, he said COPD-related mortality stands at 138.2 deaths per 100,000 men and 41.3 per 100,000 women, a sobering statistic that hits home for many Peshawar families.
For Misal Khan, a retired Govt employee said that air pollution is not just a statistic but it’s a personal tragedy.
‘Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) deprived me of my loving wife,’ he said, his voice breaking. ‘My wife, Hussan Zadgai, struggled with shortness of breath and coughing before she passed away at Lady Reading Hospital.’
Misal Khan now demands that Chief Minister Sohail Afridi take urgent steps to relocate brick kilns and marble factories from Peshawar’s residential zones instead to waste his energy on an aimless long march.
‘I only want one thing: clean air for our families so that no one is deprived of a wife. This air pollution is a silent killer,’ he said.
Standing on the Pir Zakori Sharif bridge, one can see thick black smoke curling up from thousands of vehicles and factories that could be seen even with the naked eye.
The bulldozing of green belts to make way for the ill-planned Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has further reduced the city’s natural filters.
Traffic congestion and unregulated construction have compounded the problem, turning Peshawar’s once-green image into a haze of grey.
Experts warned that the environmental challenges are not limited to air. Rivers such as the Kabul and Swat are increasingly polluted by untreated industrial discharge, sewage, and plastic waste, threatening aquatic life and human health alike.
‘Plastic dumping in rivers is killing biodiversity, including Mahseer and trout,’ said Dr. Salimur Rehman, a veteran environmentalist. ‘This is an environmental emergency and KP CM may take notice of it seriously.’
Despite the grim scenario, authorities insist that efforts are underway to combat air pollution.
The authorities however claimed that the city recently installed its first IoT-based Air Quality Monitoring System at the District Government Office to collect real-time pollution data.
Crackdowns have been launched against non-compliant factories, and a ban on non-biodegradable plastic bags is being enforced across major cities, besides raising a forest at Ghari Chandan near Peshawar.
Experts emphasized that urban pollution is not merely an environmental issue; rather it’s a direct threat to human life.
Without collective action from both the government and citizens, they warned that the health and future of generations in KP, especially in Peshawar, remain in grave danger.
As Misal Khan watches his children walk to school each morning, his plea echoes the sentiment of thousands of Peshawaries that give us clean air before it’s too late.